Reading Time: 2 minutes Alberta packers were buying fed cattle on a dressed basis at an average price of $275 delivered, which equates to $165 on a live basis. Fed cattle prices are now at 52-week highs and feeding margins are in the range of $50 to $70 per head. Strength in the cash fed cattle market was supportive […] Read more
Klassen: Fed cattle market underpins feeder cattle prices
Amended CUSMA pact includes anti-COOL clause
Reading Time: 2 minutes The new Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA), a free trade deal set to replace NAFTA, includes language meant to block any future bids at a trade-disrupting country-of-origin labeling (COOL) law. The new clause would, in theory, checkmate a move made last summer by some Democrat members of the U.S. House of Representatives to have a new North […] Read more
Klassen: Feeder market remains firm
Reading Time: 2 minutes Feeder cattle markets experienced light volumes during the final week of December and prices were relatively unchanged compared to week-ago levels. Yearling values were slightly softer, as these cattle will not have enough time to be ready for the April fed market. Buying interest for mid-weight categories was characterized as sluggish, while light-weight bawlers were […] Read more
Klassen: Improving margins support lightweight feeder cattle
Reading Time: 2 minutes Compared to last week, Western Canadian feeder cattle markets traded $2 to $4 on either side of unchanged; however, calves under 650 pounds were steady to as much as $5 higher. Bids from Alberta packers were sharply higher with fed cattle trading in the range of $160 to $162 on Friday, up $5 to $6 […] Read more
U.S. livestock: Hog futures slip ahead of USDA report
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters – U.S. hog futures eased back on Monday, ahead of a quarterly government report that is expected to show a healthy boost to the size of the U.S. hog herd, traders said. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s quarterly Hogs and Pigs report is expected to show the herd increased 2.9 percent in […] Read more
Klassen: Feeder cattle market volatility continues
Reading Time: 2 minutes Compared to last week, western Canadian feeder cattle markets traded steady to $5 higher on average. For the second week in a row, the markets were quite variable across the Prairies but shorter-keep yearlings appeared to lead the charge higher. In Alberta, quality 900-lb. steers were once again touching the $190 level and 800-lb.-plus steers […] Read more
Cattle producers get longer phase-in on new transport regs
Reading Time: 2 minutes New federal livestock transport regulations, due to come into force in February, will now roll out on a longer timeline for the beef and dairy cattle sectors. Federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau has announced a “two-year transition period” for bovines, which is meant to provide “time to gather more data on effective solutions concerning the […] Read more
Klassen: Feeder cattle market under weight of imports
Reading Time: 2 minutes Compared to last week, western Canadian feeder cattle markets traded $5 lower to $2 higher. It’s that time of year when most feedlots are carrying sufficient numbers and buyers are hesitant to increase ownership unless they can see profitability. Auction market volumes contained weaned and unweaned calves over the past week; premiums returned for feeders […] Read more
Klassen: Feeder cattle edge higher on improving margins
Reading Time: 2 minutes Compared to last week, western Canadian yearlings were $2-$3 higher; calf prices were $2 to as much as $4 higher; calves under 600 lbs. were $4 to as much as $10 higher in some cases. February and April live cattle futures appear to be incorporating a risk premium due to the uncertainty in beef production […] Read more
Ryding-Regency’s federal beef packing licenses cancelled
Reading Time: 3 minutes Citing “false or misleading information” given them during an E. coli probe, food safety officials have now permanently pulled the federal slaughter, processing and export licenses for Toronto’s Ryding-Regency Meat Packers and related companies. The cancellation, announced Monday, indefinitely prolongs what was already described as “critical processing capacity shortage” for the province’s cattle producers, leaving […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
